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Shiurim & Adult Education
THOUGHTS ON SUCCOT BY RABBI WILKINSON
It is always a ‘jolt’ moving from Ellul and the Yomim Noraim to the joy of Succot.
Interestingly both mitzvot associated with the holiday of Succot, taking the arba minim as well as dwelling in the succah, represent achdut, unity. Rabbi Daniel Stein explains that the Medrash compares the etrog, which has an appetizing taste and a pleasing aroma, to Jews who possess both Torah learning and the performance of mitzvot; the lulav, the date palm, which has a sweet flavor but no fragrance, to Jews who learn Torah but lack good deeds; the hadasim, the myrtle, which has an appealing smell but no taste, to Jews who perform mitzvot but are devoid of Torah learning; and the aravot, the bland and odourless willow, to Jews who possess neither Torah learning nor good deeds. We bind all these species together to underscore the necessity of uniting all Jews under the collaborative banner of serving the Ribbono Shel Olam. Similarly, the Gemara (Succah 27b) derives from the verse, “Every citizen in Yisrael shall dwell in succot” (Vaykira 23:42) that all the people of Israel could theoretically dwell in one succah, for the succah need not be the private property of those sitting within it. Undoubtedly, all of Klal Yisrael inhabiting one succah, coexisting under the same roof for seven consecutive days, would be a powerful statement of solidarity and achdut.
Why is Succot uniquely suited to forging and reinforcing the bonds of achdut? What aspect of the holiday dovetails with the general notion of unity? Rav Avrohom Schorr suggests that the answer is tied to the historical roots of the holiday itself.
According to one view in the Gemara, the succah corresponds not to the actual tents used by the Jewish people on their way out of Mitzrayim, but to the Clouds of Glory, the ananei hakavod, that accompanied them and hovered overhead as they travelled throughout the desert. Either way, the Tur wonders why the holiday of Succot is celebrated in the month of Tishrei and not in Nissan, when Klal Yisrael actually exited Mitrzayim and entered the desert. The Vilna Gaon explains that in the wake of the sin of the golden calf, the luchot were broken and the ananei hakavod dispersed. Immediately after Yom Kippur, when Hashem forgave the Jewish people and Moshe descended with the second set of luchot, the command to create the Mishkan, the Tabernacle, was issued. In the days that followed, the people set about gathering and collecting materials, and on the fifteenth of Tishrei, construction began. With the commencement of the building of the Mishkan the Clouds of Glory returned. Succot marks not the initial appearance of the ananei hakavod, which occurred in Nissan, but their homecoming and restoration on the fifteenth of Tishrei following the sin of the golden calf.
In general, the ananei hakavod reflect achdut in Klal Yisrael. The Gemara in Taanit, attributes the existence of the ananei hakavod to the merit of Aharon who was known for his pursuit of peace and love for mankind. Hence, when he passed away, they too ceased to function. Perhaps the model for achdut is the Clouds of Glory, because just like in a gas or a cloud, the intermolecular forces are weak, enabling the molecules to move about freely within the container, so too the ideal form of achdut is a supportive and inclusive network that does not restrict individuality or demand uniformity.
The presence of the ananei hakavod was affected by the sin of the golden calf because it entailed an element of division and discord. The Beis Haleivi notes that in truth, only a small group participated in the sin of the golden calf directly, as the verse states, “there fell of the people that day about three thousand men” (Shemot 32:28). For this reason, when the golden calf was built and handed over to the unruly mob, they were told “here are your gods” (Shemot 32:4), not “our gods”, for everyone else was not particularly invested or interested. However, they all became implicated as a result, and the sin of the golden calf remains a stain on the consciousness of the Jewish people for all generations, not because of the act that was perpetrated by a small subset, but because the majority was indifferent to the idolatrous minority in their midst. Discounting the folly of the few as sins of the “other,” and tolerating the emergence of “your gods” alongside “our G-d,” fractured the community of the Jewish people and chased away the ananei hakavod.
Rabbi Stein says that as a response, the directive to establish the Mishkan, which demanded a coordinated effort to elicit donations and expertise from all sectors of the Jewish people, was intended to heal the divisive wounds left by the golden calf and sow the seeds of unity once again. Indeed, the Mishkan was referred to as the “Mishkan of Testimony”, for the Mishkan “was a testimony to Yisrael that Hashem had forgiven them for the incident of the golden calf”. On the fifteenth of Tishrei, once the Mishkan project was underway, the ananei hakavod returned as a symbol of the renewed spirit of achdut that was sweeping through the Jewish camp.
According to the Medrash the Mishkan brought shalom, “peace”, back to the Jewish people, and this phenomenon is commemorated on holiday of succot which is suffused with the theme of achdut and embodied by the succah itself which is often called in our prayers “succat shalom”, “the succah of peace.”
May our celebration of sukkot this year inspire and ignite a greater sense of unity amongst our people and precipitate an era of prolonged peace and security.
Ruth and I wish you and your families a chag sameach.
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